• Travelsignposts Home
  • Country Guides
  • City Guides
  • River Cruises
  • Europe Photos
  • About Us

Italy Travel

  • Home
  • Trip Planner
  • Photos
  • Videos
  • Map
  • Weather
  • Site Map
  • Destinations
  • Shopping
  • Sightseeing
  • Food
  • Getting around
  • Useful facts
  • News & Events
You are here: Home / Sightseeing / Rome attractions – The Crypt of the Capuchins

Rome attractions – The Crypt of the Capuchins

By Helen Page Leave a Comment

  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window)

Skeletons, skulls and bones in the city centre of Rome:

Fountain of the Bees, look for it in front of the Capuchin Crypt

Fountain of the Bees, look for it in front of the Capuchin Crypt


We came to Piazza Barberini in search of Tony’s razor part, but what we found was something more macabre! At the foot of Via Veneto, at no. 27, is the the church of Santa Maria della Concezione, better known as the Capuchin Church. Beneath this plain looking church, there is an extraordinary Crypt where the bones and skulls of generations of Capuchin friars are used to elaborately decorate the walls, archways and niches of the Crypt.

About the Crypt

The Crypt is made up of six vaults comprising five crypts and a Mass Chapel.  Each of the crypts is decorated with bones and skulls and depicts a different religious scene.  Only the Mass Chapel is free of bones as it’s used for the celebration of mass.

  • Crypt of the Resurrection
  • Crypt of the Skulls
  • Crypt of the Pelvises
  • Crypt of the Leg Bones and Thigh Bones
  • Crypt of the Three Skeletons
  • Mass Chapel

The Capuchin friars were so called because of the “capuche” or hood attached to their religious habit. The friars came to live in Santa Maria della Concezione in 1631 when they left the friary of St. Bonaventura dei Lucchesi (near Trevi Fountain). When the friars moved location, the remains of the deceased friars were moved from the old friary and laid to rest under their new church.  The friars then began to bury their own dead here and subsequently the bodies of poor Romans were buried here as well.  The Chapel was where the friars would pray each evening before retiring for the night.

The burial place was altered and tranformed into its current funeareal art form over a period of 100 years.

– Entry is free but small donations are appreciated.
– Photography is not allowed but you can see pictures of these at www.cappucciniviaveneto.it

Fontana delle Api

While you’re in the vicinity of Piazza Barberini, have a drink at the Fontana delle Api. It’s okay to drink from here as the Latin inscription tells us that the water is for the use of the public and their animals.   This fountain is one of Bernini’s more modest works and was created as a homage to Pope Urban VIII Barberini.  “Api” are bees and are the Barberini family symbol.  At the fountain are little crab-like bees which appear to be sipping water from the basin.

Check out some Rome Sightseeing tours HERE

More things to do in Rome

Click here to get a free PDF of this post

How will you use this information to the fullest?
  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window)

Related

Filed Under: Sightseeing Tagged With: Capuchin friars, Crypt of the Capuchins, Fontana delle Api, Rome, Rome sightseeing, Rome sightseeing tours, Santa Maria della Concesione, Sightseeing

avatar

About Helen Page

Helen Page is a prolific blogger and ardent traveller; she runs Travelsignposts with her professional writer and photographer husband Tony.

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

You can also find us on

  • Facebook
  • Google+
  • LinkedIn
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Latest Additions

  • Giant Street Art adds spice to Rome’s Creative Scene
  • How to make Orecchiette pasta – The Favourite Ears of Puglia
  • Dinner in the Lair of a Giant Octopus!
  • Grandstand View of Il Campo, Siena
  • A Unique Tableware Find in Venice

Plan and Book Your Trip


eNews and Updates

feedburner Sign up now to get emailed news as well as other site updates!

Get the Guerrilla Travel Photography ebook here now!
City Guides
Country Guides
River Cruises

Who is behind Travelsignposts?

Helen and Tony Page at Singapore Changi Airport

We're Helen and Tony Page, and we love travelling - lucky as we've been doing it for the last few decades!

Tony has long been a professional photographer and writer, but Helen now writes most of the posts and takes a lot of photos herself!

Travelsignposts is our main travel planning site, but we've just launched Travelsignposts China and Tony also runs the Travelsignposts Photo and Guerrilla Travel Photography web sites, as well as publishing the Take Better Digital Photos and Guerrilla Travel Photography eBooks.

Read more about Helen and Tony or contact them.

Other Countries

  • Austria
  • Belgium
  • Bulgaria
  • Croatia
  • Czech Republic
  • Devon & Cornwall
  • England
  • Estonia
  • Europe (General)
  • Finland
  • France
  • Germany
  • Greece
  • Ireland
  • Netherlands
  • Norway
  • Portugal
  • Scotland
  • Spain
  • Switzerland
  • Turkey
  • Ukraine

Resources

  • Take Better Digital Photos eBook Take Better Digital Photos eBook
  • Take Better Digital Photos Free eCourse
  • Travel Signposts Photo – our main travel photography site
  • Guerrilla Travel Photography eBook Guerrilla Travel Photography eBook

Copyright © 2021 Travelsignposts Pty Ltd · All Rights Reserved | Privacy Policy   |   Terms of Service   |   Affiliate Disclaimer   |   Log in

Get a free PDF of this post!
Just enter your email address below and we'll send it to you immediately.

Please enter your Email Address